Now that we have helped you to introduce your two new family members let’s hit on some of the health issues.  It should be said that all pets should be in optimal health before the introduction so the additional stress is not a burden on either the cat or dog in the environment. 

Any time you add a new four-legged companion to your home, the hope is that they will learn to share the home and enjoy each other’s company, but there are some areas where sharing isn’t helpful.  While dogs and cats cannot expose one another to infectious diseases, parasites are a different story.  Flea or tick problems in the house or yard can be equally shared by cat or dog. When working to get rid of parasites, you must treat all pets who share the environment.

If given the chance, many dogs will eat out of the litter box (cats seem to be a little smarter in that regard), exposing themselves to any intestinal parasites carried by the cat.  Many cats won’t eat dog food, but again the reverse is not true, and dogs can get some pretty severe stomach upsets from eating cat food.  It’s best to keep the litter box and food bowls where they can’t share.
Ringworm infections (caused by a fungus, rather than a worm) can be passed between cat and dog as well as to the human family members.  They can also share ear mites if they get along well enough to sleep with each other. 

In my practice experience, as well as my own home, a cat is usually in charge, but I am always careful of one cat with multiple dogs. I am also careful to warn owners of the protruding-eye type breeds like pugs and Boston terriers of the dangers of eye lacerations from the claw of the cat that the dog should have left alone.  Most of the time a cat can get to higher ground if rough play gets out of hand, but the cat could get hurt if he gets caught. Better to be sure they get along well before you leave them alone unattended.

Today’s blog was written by Dr. Angela Ivey, director of veterinary medicine at the Richmond SPCA. Dr. Ivey spent many years in private veterinary practice before joining the medical staff at the Richmond SPCA in 2004.

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